Blind, But Still Strong
by The Soul Siblings
Summary: Sasuke is born blind. Having to learn to make his way in the world being the only 'Blind Uchiha' has taken it its toll on him. But can a certain blonde Jinchuriki help him find something worth being blind for? No pairings.
1. Prologue

Astral- Hi! For all of you who already know us, nice of you to read this. For all of you who don't, well, I hope you like our writing.

Gaara- We hope you all enjoy this new fanfic that just popped into our head while we were sleeping the other night.

Mirokai- This is an awesome idea!

Gaara-Just FYI this fanfic IS NOT YAOI! The only pairings it will have will most likely either be the canon pairings, or none whatsoever. This is not a SasuNaru fic.

* * *

" Push!" Encouraged the midwife, as Mikoto struggled through her labor. Fugaku held his wife's hand, not the least bit worried. Even as Mikoto screamed in pain as another contraction started, he knew she would be fine, she was an Uchiha after all.

Fugaku knew that his next child was going to be a powerful asset to the Uchiha family. He already had a training regimen ready for his new child. Hopefully he would even be able to activate the Sharingan sooner than his other son, Itachi.

Another pained cry from Mikoto brought him back to the present. She was almost done, he could tell. Soon, he would have another son who he could train to be an aspiring Uchiha, just like his older brother, who would no doubt help train him as well. Itachi had wanted a younger brother, after all, and Fugaku loved his son, both Itachi and the new arrival. Itachi would no doubt be a positive influence on his newborn son.

" Uchiha-sama?" The midwife mumbled, taking the newborn baby and covering him in blankets. While he had been thinking, she had performed a multitude of medical jutsu that tested the child for multiple different peculiarities and problems that could potentially be a hazard for the boy in the future.

"What is it?" Nothing could have gone wrong, could it? They had done everything possible to ensure maximum safety and power to both mother and child. There was no way anything bad could have happened.

"It's about the boy. . ."

"Sasuke." Fugaku quickly said. His newest son was named Sasuke. He and Mikoto had decided on it as soon as they had figured out that she was pregnant again. A tribute to Sasuke Sarutobi, the father of the Sandaime Hokage. "What?" He snapped at her. He did not like to be kept waiting.

" I apologize, Uchiha-sama, but Sasuke's eyes. . ." She trailed off, as if afraid he might get mad at her if she told him.

" Yes? What about his eyes. Spit it out before I decide to check him over myself."

"There's a problem with his eyes, it's on a neurological level I'm afraid, so it cannot be fixed. He's blind, Uchiha-sama, I'm sorry."

Fugaku blinked, before snatching the baby out of the midwife's hands. A quick chakra examination of Sasuke's eyes confirmed what the midwife had said. Almost immediately, all of Fugaku's plans to raise and train his new son to be one of the best shinobi went out the window. Who had ever heard of a blind Uchiha? Their Kekkai Genkai required sight to unlock, or so he thought.

He growled, " Get out!" to the midwife, who quickly left the house as fast as possible.

Mikoto gently took baby Sasuke from her husband and looked at him in mild sadness. The poor child would never be able to truly be an Uchiha, but she knew the best they could do was care for their child as best as possible, maybe he could even make it to Genin before he was killed.

Blind ninja were not something you'd come across every day.

* * *

Astral- Sorry it was so short. This chapter was just so we could set up the way the fanfic's gonna go. Of course, this is different from canon, drastically. Sasuke is blind, but Fugaku and Mikoto still take care of him to the best of their abilities until the Uchiha Massacre, unlike some blind!Sasuke fanfics we've read where Fugaku's an ass and disowns Sasuke.

Mirokai-Please make sure to leave a review! Fanfiction authors like us live on reviews! THEY ARE FOOD!

Gaara-Please don't starve us.

Mirokai-LEAVE A REVIEW!

Gaara- If possible.

Astral- Thank you for reading.


	2. Chapter 1

Mirokai-Second part!

Astral-Yay! We finally managed to finish it and get it out!

Gaara- We apologize if it was a long wait, but we've been at a camp that requires you to stay over in cabins for a week, so we didn't get to post it until today.

Astral-But it was fun! But anywho, please enjoy the next chapter of our fanfiction.

Mirokai-WOOHOO!

* * *

Sasuke sighed. It was his second year at the Academy and he was already tired of it. He would end up dying on his first mission anyways, so why put in the effort. He had only barely managed to pass the first exam due to the fact that he had to rely on his senses of hearing, touch, and smell for everything. He wished he didn't suck so bad.

Then there were the bullies. Some of the kids in his class were less than friendly, to put it lightly. They seemed to have made it their life mission to humiliate and hurt him in every way possible. Every time the teacher wasn't looking they would trip him, push him down, make him run into things, they even went as far as to tell him he looked ugly, that his eyes were disgusting. They had made a habit of dumping what smelled like paint, as well as various amounts of other liquids, on him whenever possible.

He just wished he wasn't so goddamn helpless. Nobody else in the room would ever appreciate the gift of sight that they had. No, only the ones without it would be able to know how special it was to see your friends, the way you're walking, even your own reflection in a mirror.

' _Annnn, their so stupid!._ 'he thought, slamming his head onto his desk. Mother had always told him that she and Father would do their best to 'meet his needs,' but he was an Uchiha, and an Uchiha without sight isn't really an Uchiha in the first place. The only person that Sasuke actually listened to and respected was his older brother, Itachi. He wished he was like him, but he never could be, never would be.

He would be turning seven in a few months, something he was not looking forwards to. It would just be another reminder of how useless he was. ' _I don't need another so called 'Birthday Party' to rub it in my face that I will never be a real shinobi, let alone an Uchiha.'_

He snapped back to the classroom as he heard the sliding door open, and the footsteps of what was probably their Sensei walked up to the middle of the front of the room.

" Stand!" The class rep shouted, causing Sasuke to flinch before standing. She didn't need to be that loud, he could hear her normal volume level in the midst of multiple other conversations with her sitting _across the room._ She was that loud. " Bow!"

After the class had gotten settled down and become silent again. Iruka-sensei made a surprising announcement. " Alright! You brats are getting a new classmate today. He's been tutored privately until the Hokage saw fit to allow him into the academy." Sasuke blinked his unseeing eyes twice in slight shock. Tutored privately? Only clans did that. ' _Just my luck. Another stuck up sissy.'_ This kid was gonna bully him too, he just knew it.

"Uzumaki Naruto! Get in here!" Iruka-sensei yelled, in an uncharacteristically harsh manner. Whispers whipped throughout the room as the door opened once again, and a pair of surprisingly light footsteps sprinted into the room. He knew that name. It was the supposed 'demon kid'. Mother and Father had always told him to stay away from him for some unknown reason. All adults hated him, and he got injured quite a lot. At least, that's what he assumed. He guessed he got attacked by the villagers a bunch, which wasn't surprising. All of the children hated him too. The wariness of their parents passed down to them.

Sasuke, in all honesty, didn't really feel anything towards the boy. He was just another person, another bully to clog his eardrums, another hand to shove his face into the dirt. ' _It's not like he'll be any different just because he's hated. If anything he'll be worse.'_

" Hiya! I'm Uzumaki Naruto! And I'm gonna be the Hokage!" The entire class burst out laughing, and Sasuke let out a small snort at Naruto's voice. He was even louder than Sakura, and had a weird tone to it that told him this kid was gonna be trouble. And his statement? ' _Tch. Impossible. No one would allow someone like you to become Hokage. Least of all you. Probably won't make it five minutes before falling asleep like Shikamaru!'_

" Alright brats. Settle down. Naruto, why don't you sit next to Sasuke. Now then, let's begin the lesson. ."

Sasuke tuned out as Iruka-sensei started blabbing about the history of Konoha. His parents had made him memorize this by the time he was three. He didn't need to be paying attention to pass the test. Instead, he focused on the sound of Naruto sliding into the seat next to him. He observed him.

One might find it strange that a blind person could observe someone, but Sasuke had found that he actually seemed to notice more about people without his eyes that what people with eyes could do. Maybe it was the fact that most other people's observations would be based solely on sight? He didn't know, nor did he particularly care.

Naruto seemed smaller than him, he thought. He chalked it up to the fact that Naruto was one of those weight sensitive people. Granted you don't see it, or in his case, hear it, as much in boys so much as girls, but there were still those few boys. From the murmurs around the classroom, he guessed Naruto's outfit was baggy, and, apparently, bright orange. Sasuke had never been good with color, being blind and all, but from what his parents had taught him, orange stood out a lot, bright orange even more so. It was literally the worst color for a shinobi _ever._ He had a pretty good lung capacity though, if the fact that he was louder than Sakura was anything to go by, which was good for Naruto, bad for Sasuke, 'cause the kid might cause him to go deaf as well. The most curious thing about him Sasuke had concluded, was the fact that Naruto smelled almost exactly like miso ramen. A very disconcerting fact to say the least, it would be hard to tell if it was Naruto or the ramen stand until he was close enough to hear telltale signs of one or the other, meaning he had to be right next to Naruto to differentiate him from the ramen stand in a crowd. All in all, he actually seemed different, even if it wasn't by much.

Naruto shifted, the sudden noise causing Sasuke to flinch automatically. " Hey! Nice ta meet'cha! My name's Naruto! What's yours?" Sasuke could tell Naruto was trying to be friendly, and there was a hint of desperation in his tone that suggested that he might not have many friends, which wasn't surprising considering his reputation.

". . .Sasuke." He replied. Either way, he didn't care what Naruto's reputation or personality was like, because it wouldn't change anything.

He had never been so wrong in his entire life.

" It's nice to meet you Sasuke! I hope we can be friends." Again, Sasuke heard the desperation in Naruto's tone, though it was hidden. Being blind had its perks, even if there weren't many, and picking out underlying tones was one of them. He could tell that Naruto really wanted to be his friend, but if he replied in a positive manner, the others would surely start to pick on him too.

" Hn. Whatever." Sasuke decided on a neutral approach, not negative, but not positive either. Maybe that would get Naruto off his back and away from him. He had always been more of a loner anyways. ' _The others are gonna bully him too if he hangs out with me. Besides, as soon as he figures out I'm blind he'll go straight to bullying me, just like every other idiot.'_

L.+I.+N.+E.+B.+R.+E.+A.+K.+

Naruto didn't talk the rest of the lesson, but from the sound of it, he wasn't paying much attention. He wasn't taking notes, that much was obvious, and he definitely wasn't being respectful to Iruka-sensei, if the stink bomb he threw in the middle of the lesson was anything to go by.

Thankfully, Naruto had thrown the so-called, 'harmless prank' as far from himself as possible, meaning Sasuke was at least somewhat spared from the stench that permeated the room for ten minutes after the bomb was thrown. But he hadn't fallen asleep, Sasuke noticed. That in itself was deemed an achievement by Sasuke, seeing as the boy next to him was anything but scholarly.

After the lesson ended, they were told to go outside for lunch. Grabbing his bento, Sasuke stood up and made his way to the door, using the desks as landmarks to make his way out of the classroom. Suddenly, a foot contacted with his shins, tripping him and sending him tumbling down the steps before finally stopping in the empty spot in the middle of the classroom. As soon as he fell, every student in the room erupted in laughter. He sat up, rubbing his head slightly from the pain, before groping around for his bento. If his classmates had taken it again, he would _not_ be happy. ' _Damn it! Where the hell did it go?'_

" Oi! Why the hell did you do that! That wasn't nice at all!" A familiar, loud voice filled the room and the entire group of people who were laughing went silent.

" What's it to you, Uzumaki? It's not like it matters. The idiot's blind, can't you tell? Besides, he probably doesn't like you either. Acting all high and mighty all the time, just because he's an Uchiha! How the hell can you have a blind Uchiha. He deserves every bruise he gets. And you," Sasuke heard some scuffling footsteps before another person tumbled down beside him with an 'oomph!,' " You deserve the same and more, you monster!"

With that last verbal weapon thrown, the rest of the students cleared out, knowing their fun was over. In less than a minute, it was just him and Naruto.

Sasuke continued to frantically search for his lunch as Naruto got back on his feet. "Here." Naruto said, and Sasuke heard a box get placed down in front of him. He grabbed it, and quickly searched its sides for identification, sighing in relief when he found the Uchiha clan symbol on the bottom.

" Thanks."

"Heh, no problem. I managed to get it back from the bastard who took it from you after you fell when he pushed me. Probably hasn't even noticed it's gone yet. Can I help you up?" Sasuke sucked in his breath sharply at Naruto's words. First, Naruto had stood up for him, then he had gotten himself hurt just to get Sasuke's lunch back for him, now he was offering his help. No one had ever done that for him, not even Itachi. It caused a strange feeling to well up in his chest.

Slowly, he nodded, and felt Naruto's hand grab his arm and hoist him onto his feet. As soon as he regained his balance, Sasuke quickly yanked his arm out of Naruto's and stepped away from him. Swinging his free arm around until he found a desk, he followed it until, finally, he managed to reach the door.

" Thanks. And don't take this the wrong way. It's not that I don't appreciate your help, but stay away from me, okay?" Sasuke mumbled, just loud enough for Naruto to hear.

"Huh? Why?" Naruto seemed utterly confused for now, so the Uchiha decided he would take his leave, walking out of the room as Naruto started to say something else. Sasuke didn't catch what the Dobe had said, but it probably wasn't important. ' _He's gonna get hurt if he hangs out with me.'_

P.+O.+V.+C.+H.+A.+N.+G.+E.+

Naruto couldn't believe it! He was finally deemed 'old enough' by Jiji to join the Academy! Though he couldn't see why he couldn't have just started at the same time everyone else his age had. It wasn't as if he was in danger of something happening. . .or something. ' _I still don't understand why everyone keeps being mean to me!'_

He quickly ran out of his apartment, using the lesser traveled rooftops to make his way to the Academy. Stopping on the roof of a nearby building, he observed all of the students entering the building. Most of the students looked older than him, but he could pick out one or two that would probably be in his class.

There were two girls who were walking in together that looked his age. One had short pink hair that was pulled back from her forehead by a red bow, and the other had long blonde hair that was pulled into a ponytail. As they disappeared inside, two boys walked into his field of vision. One looked slightly overweight and was stuffing his face with potato chips. The other one looked like he was the epitome of laziness, if the fact that he was practically asleep on his feet was anything to go on. They were followed closely by another boy who was wearing a large coat and dark glasses. Next to him was a shy-looking girl with vacant eyes and short, bluish black hair. After the two quiet looking ones entered, a large group of rowdy boys showed up. At the very front of the pack stood a brown haired boy with a puppy on his head and red markings on his cheeks.

After about five minutes, when almost everybody else was already in the building, and classes were going to start in less then ten minutes, a lone child arrived, being led along, it seemed, by another boy. If Naruto had to guess he would say that they were brothers. At the gates, the older one let go of the younger's hand and said a few things to him, before disappearing in a swirl of watched, completely and utterly confused, as the dark haired boy, instead of walking straight up to the door leading inside, took the 'long way' around the outer wall, using his right hand to guide him along until he reached the door, which he carefully opened and finally stepped inside.

Naruto shrugged, maybe the dark haired boy was just weird and liked to follow the wall, he wasn't one to judge. Kami knows _he_ got judged more than he needed to be. Naruto never understood why everyone hated him so much. The only people who were nice to him were Old Man Teuchi and his daughter, Ayame, as well as Jiji and the ninja he sometimes sent to guard Naruto on his birthday, or any other day that the villagers got particularly bad. ' _I just wish that some kid will be willing to be my friend one of these days. All the kids I meet either run from me screaming or they bully me. Argh!'_

Naruto's train of thought stopped when he heard the bell ring that signaled the start of class. " Crap!"

L.+I.+N.+E.+B.+R.+E.+A.+K.+

There was definitely something different about the dark haired kid. When Naruto sat down next to him, he didn't so much as give an acknowledging nod, let alone say hello. And he got the feeling that the boy was studying him intently, even if he wasn't looking at him. And when Naruto started to turn to say hello, he flinched, as if surprised he had moved.

"Hey! Nice ta meet'cha! My name's Naruto! What's yours?" He expected to be ignored. Either that or he would be told to 'buzz off', like most kids told him to do.

He got extremely nervous when the boy didn't answer immediately. He was about to give up on getting an answer when, to his surprise, he got an answer. ". . .Sasuke."

Naruto let a large grin spread across his face at the hesitant tone. He was so happy he had gotten a positive reaction from Sasuke! Granted, it wasn't really a positive reply, more of an indifferent one, but it was better than the negative, or nothing. "It's nice to meet you Sasuke! I hope we can be friends."

"Hn. Whatever."

' _Yes! Another answer! Maybe he really will be my first friend! That would be awesome!'_ Naruto couldn't wait to ask if he could sit with Sasuke at lunchtime. That would be the time he would be able to see if Sasuke would be his friend or not, because friends always sat together, right? He always saw the other kids doing that when he sometimes watched from the roof.

L.+I.+N.+E.+B.+R.+E.+A.+K.+

When lunchtime came, he finally figured out what was so strange about Sasuke. He was _blind._ And, from the look of it, was bullied pretty heavily for it. He hated it when he saw people being bullied, having had the same experiences in his life as well.

Sasuke seemed pretty shaken up after being forced to take the 'fast way' down the stairs leading to the front of the room. But that wasn't enough for the perpetrator. '' _Oh! I've completely and utterly shocked the kid I'm bullying!' That should be enough but Nooooo! They just have to go the extra mile and humiliate him! I hate that!'_

"Oi! Why the hell did you do that! That wasn't nice at all!" Naruto, being the nice person that he is, decided to help Sasuke. He didn't like watching people get bullied, and maybe Sasuke would be more okay with becoming his friend if he helped him. Naruto listened to the boy insult both Sasuke and him, before getting himself shoved down the stairs. He had watched the boy grab Sasuke's lunch box and used the spur of the moment face planting lesson to get it back for Sasuke.

After the group of bullies left, Naruto picked himself off the ground and watched for a few seconds as Sasuke searched frantically for his bento before placing it down gently in front of Sasuke. "Here."

After a few seconds of searching for something on the box, the tension in Sasuke's shoulders eased and he said, "Thanks."

" Heh, no problem. I managed to get it back from the bastard who took it from you after you fell when he pushed me. Probably hasn't even noticed it's gone yet. Can I help you up?" He really hoped that Sasuke was alright. After tumbling head over heels down a bunch of stairs even _he_ got disconcerted, and he could _see._ He couldn't even imagine how lost Sasuke must feel without his eyes to guide him.

After a terse nod from Sasuke, Naruto quickly grabbed Sasuke's arm and hoisted him onto his feet. He watched in slight disappointment as Sasuke fumbled to the door, not asking for any help, even though it was clear that he needed it. Right before he left, Sasuke said, "Thanks. And don't take this the wrong way. It's not that I don't appreciate your help, but stay away from me, okay?"

" Huh? Why?" Naruto was confused. As Sasuke opened the door and started to walk out, Naruto felt himself wilt a little. "You don't like me either, huh. Alright. Sorry I disturbed you."

Why had he thought that Sasuke would have been any different. ' _He doesn't want me around either. I'll never have any friends.'_

* * *

Astral-Annd, done! We finished! Was it a good length? It definitely isn't as long as Shadow's chapters, that's for sure, but we managed to go to a pretty good length!

Mirokai-Please don't forget to review!

Gaara- We need at least one more review before we continue, 'kay? Thanks. Later.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Mirokai-Okie dokie lokie! Next chappie is HERE!

Gaara- Sorry it took so long, we had other things we needed to do, and with school having just started up again it's been hard to find time to write.

Astral-Yeah, our bad. Anywho, please enjoy, maybe with a hot chocolate, 'cause where we are, it's snowing. Review!

* * *

Sasuke sighed. He was sitting under the same tree he always sat under, trying to organize his thoughts. ' _Okay, what do I know about the new kid?'_

Well, Naruto was a lot smaller than other kids, even some of the girls, and they were all smaller than everyone else, and seemed to have a strange obsession with ramen, which wasn't healthy in the least. No one could smell _that much_ like ramen unless they ate it a lot. He got injured a lot, and had a large presence and a loud voice, something Sasuke would try and make him tune down in the next few weeks, or he'd probably go deaf as well as blind, and that would make him completely unable to be a shinobi. Which would suck bigtime. Other than that, he seemed friendly enough.

It would be nice to have a friend to help him with stuff like what the time was and where stuff was, and it would just be fun to hang out with someone other than Itachi or any of the other, considerably more stuck up, Uchihas. But then his friend might get hurt by the bullies, like Kiba and his gang. Or, in Naruto's case, more hurt. He didn't want that. ' _As long as nobody else gets hurt or humiliated, that's fine with me. Except maybe Kiba. He deserves to be humiliated.'_

Sasuke suddenly heard footsteps coming towards the opposite side of the tree, where he knew a lone swing was hung from the branches. Both the tree and the swing creaked as someone sat down. He edged himself a little closer to the swing side of the tree, trying to get one hint of who was sitting on the swing. Sasuke got his answer as he caught a whiff of ramen, before the scent was carried away in the wind. He heard a slurping sound and only then realized it was Naruto. He had smelled ramen when Naruto had sat down, so, of course, it had to be Naruto.

He quickly hid himself using the trunk of the tree and tried to eat his lunch as quietly as possible. He liked his solitude, to a certain extent, but it got lonely after a while. He must be pretty desperate to enjoy the company of an idiot slurping ramen who didn't even know he was there. Not to mention said idiot was mumbling to themselves like a crazy person. ' _Wait. . .why's he mumbling to himself?'_

"Stupid Sasuke, thinks he's so high and mighty. I thought I would finally have a friend. . . but he can't stomach me either. . ."

Sasuke was shocked. Was Naruto really that desperate for a friend, like him? He even went so far as to call Sasuke high and mighty, and though many things he may be, those were not part of him, he didn't think so at least. . . ' _Poor Naruto, but if he gets hurt more than he already is being hurt, I would feel really bad.'_

Steeling his resolve, Sasuke decided he would ignore Naruto the rest of the day, and then talk to him tomorrow. ' _He'll be fine for one more day, right? And besides, maybe I can find out if he's really telling the truth about wanting to be my friend!'_

L.+I.+N.+E.+B.+R.+E.+A.+K.+

The rest of the day passed quickly, with Naruto trying to get Sasuke to talk and work with him. Sasuke, on the other hand, was doing his best to ignore said blonde, not that Sasuke knew Naruto _was_ blonde.

Soon enough, the end of the school day came around, and as the final bell sounded, kids raced out of their seats, stampeding towards the door like a herd of beasts. The sound always made Sasuke flinch. ' _So loud.'_

Sasuke was much slower, as he prefered to avoid being trampled thank you. That and he could normally avoid some of the worst bullies when he left late. He would have to wait at the gate for a while for Itachi, as the rest of the Uchihas were in some sort of 'top secret meeting' and wouldn't be done for a long time yet.

He sighed, he didn't like waiting.

Walking out front, using the hallway as a guide he made his way to the gate. ' _Let's see. . .turn right at the third door and walk seven paces, then turn left. . .'_

L.+I.+N.+E.+B.+R.+E.+A.+K.+

It had been about an hour and Sasuke still hadn't been picked up, it was starting to get colder, and he was scared. Sasuke didn't like being left alone, contrary to most inferences, and all of the parents who thought it was just because he was a stupid Uchiha. The other fact happened to be that he was slightly afraid of thunder, the storm he could hear approaching faster and faster by the minute. ' _Dangit. . . I don't wanna get soaked. . .'_

And it rained.

Another hour later and Sasuke was still there, sitting on the ground, soaked and shivering. But what made it still worse was the people who just happened to walk by at that very moment.

"Well, and if it isn't the blind Uchiha." Kiba.

Tilting his head to the side to show that he was listening, Sasuke mentally cursed that they had come back to the school at this time. ' _Maybe one of them forgot their homework, and they all came back to get it. . . .Pff yeah right.'_

"What're you doing here _Sasuke?_ Waiting for mommy to come and guide you home? Maybe, if you get lost, mommy will see how useless you are, and leave you to die."

With a yelp, Sasuke was yanked off the ground and dragged down the street by a multitude of arms. He struggled, but he wasn't nearly as strong as the rest of the boys put together. After about ten minutes, he stopped struggling and just let his feet drag in the mud as he was taken to who knows where, silent tears running down his cheeks.

L.+I.+N.+E.+B.+R.+E.+A.+K.+

By now hours had passed, and Sasuke still hadn't been found. The bullies had left him in some alley, in the middle of who knows where. It was still raining, and by now, it must have been almost nine o'clock, his mother and father, and especially Itachi would be worried about him. But, they had probably given up searching hours ago. ' _Probably think I was killed by an assassin or something. . .'_

He hadn't stopped crying the entire time, and he was sure to have dried salt on his face the next morning. ' _If I ever live to see tomorrow morning. .'_

Just then, the sound of footsteps splashing down the path caused him to start. It seemed like whoever it was, they were running pretty fast. Sasuke hoped that whoever it was wouldn't notice him, and he would be left alone until his aniki found him. But he never got such luck.

"Hey, Sasuke? You okay?" It was Naruto.

"Go away. . ." Why did it have to be Naruto of all people to find him. He wouldn't want to be friends with someone who was stuck in the middle of the city, crying.

"Why should I go away? It's almost eleven o'clock, did you know that? What are you doin' in the middle of this alley anyways?" Wow, it was a lot later than he thought. Even in the middle of the night, Naruto was talkative. Not that Sasuke necessarily minded. He always prefered to listen more than talk. ' _It makes it easier for Naruto to be my friend that way, I guess. . .'_

"Why should I tell you?"

"Because I'm the only one who ever goes out this time of night, though one of the clans has been surprisingly active tonight." Sasuke, drew in a sharp breath. So they were looking for him, they just couldn't find him for some reason. ' _That's a relief.'_

"Fine. But first tell me why you're out in the middle of a rainstorm at midnight." Sasuke just couldn't resist teasing his maybe-probably-hopefully-soon-to-be friend, even if he was scared and lost, and probably catching a cold.

"Well, at this time of night, I can play at the playground without other kids and their parents yelling at me or hurting me. Even in rain, it's much better than going during the day when the sun is shining. So, you finally gonna tell me why you're cryin' in the middle of one of the most secluded back alleys of Konoha, mister high and mighty?" Sasuke had to admit, Naruto had a good reason to be out. The playground would be completely empty, unlike some other parts of the city, and there wouldn't be people to treat him like trash, as he had heard others do.

"I'm not high and mighty! I just. . . I didn't want you to be bullied by the other boys in our class. You're new, and, and-" Sasuke decided to stop talking before he worked himself into hysterics. "I was gonna talk to you tomorrow, but, well, we're both here so." Sasuke pulled his legs closer to him, waiting to hear what Naruto's reaction would be.

"Okay. . . so, how did you end up out here? For like the third time. If you tell me where you live, I might be able to take you back home, and if not, I can just take you to my place!"

Sasuke blinked twice in shock, before lifting his head from his knees and shifting his blank gaze to where he thought Naruto was. "W-well, the bullies from earlier today grabbed me as I was waiting by the gate for my aniki to pick me up and take me home, because I can't see, and all. . .but they grabbed me and dragged me out here, and now I don't know how to get home." He sniffed, and raised his hands to do his best to wipe the tears away.

"Alright, I'll take you home then. Address?" Even if Sasuke couldn't see Naruto, he got the feeling that the other boy was smiling.

"The Uchiha Compound."

He heard a splash, as if someone had just fallen over, and then Naruto started yelling. "What the- You're an Uchiha!? But you're nothing like those stuck up bastards! Well, you don't seem to be anymore. Now I get why you wear that fan thingy on your back."

He felt Naruto's hand grab his own and drag him to his feet. "Don't worry, I know where the Uchiha Compound is. Hang on, if we run fast enough, I can get us there in under ten minutes! I promise, as your friend, that I won't let go."

Sasuke's breath caught in his throat. He choked out, "Friends?"

"Yeah, silly, that's what you've been talking about right? The whole, 'I was going to talk to you tomorrow' thing?" Sasuke couldn't believe it. Naruto had accepted him, blindness and all, in less than a second. Completely speechless, the blind Uchiha nodded, before smiling. He finally had a friend!

"'Kay, let's go!" Naruto shouted, and then, took off running, Sasuke in tow.

"W-wait a minute! Not so fast! I'm gonna run into something! NARUTO!"

* * *

Gaara-Only one POV this time. Next time we'll include both Naruto and Sasuke's point of view.

Astral-Hope you're ready! Next chapter we tackle some major sadness, except that we're not good at writing sad stuff. . .

Mirokai- REVIEW!


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Astral-Augh! Finals!

Mirokai-MY BRAIN FEELS LIKE IT'S GOING TO EXPLODE!

Gaara-Sorry about the long wait, as you can see, we've been preparing for our Midterms and haven't had time to type any new chapters. Hell, we should probably be studying right now, but-

Mirokai-PROCRASTINATION!

Astral-Anywho, here's a Christmas Gift to all of you who read our fanfic. WE thank you so much for taking time out of your day to listen to us ramble.

* * *

"So Sasuke, how are you and Naruto getting along? You seem a lot happier nowadays. No more of all that drama you would put us through with those bouts of depression about your eyes. And from the look of it, you've been going out a lot more often. Before, you almost never wanted to go out in public." Sasuke's mother, Mikoto asked while the family was together sitting at the dinner table.

It had been awhile since he and Naruto had become friends, Sasuke's birthday had come and gone, as had summer break, and the first semester of his second year at the academy. Both of them were now seven, which Sasuke was glad about, Naruto hadn't stopped teasing him until they were the same age. Not that he minded. Sure, the loudmouth could get annoying, but it was only friendly banter, Sasuke could hear it in Naruto's tone. And, he was getting better reaction skills, because the only warning Naruto would give before any obstacle would be something like 'Duck!' or 'Jump!', and he'd have to react. If he didn't, he would either trip or bonk his head. But he silently thanked Naruto for the extra training.

"It's great! I've been getting better reflexes because he gives almost no warning before we're jumping over something or diving under it! So I'm getting stronger, Father! And Naruto and I train together when the other kids at school are slacking off. I can hit a tree with a kunai every time now, and I can't even see it!"

Mikoto chuckled, and then gave Sasuke a small pat on the head. "That's great! I'm very happy you've begun to improve. I always get mad at your teachers when they say you can't be a shinobi. All you need is the right encouragement, and you shoot up tons! Right, dear?"

Fugaku hn'd in response. He was silently very proud of his son. Sasuke was going to grow up to be a strong shinobi with Naruto at his side. At first, he had been wary of the demon child, but after seeing the way he affected his son, Fugaku was glad the kid was around. He certainly was a bundle of energy, always keeping Sasuke on his toes. Which was a good thing, the boy needed all the training he could get. Especially for what was happening tonight.

"When's Naruto coming to pick you up?" Itachi asked, smiling at his little brother, even though Sasuke couldn't see it.

"He said he was coming at six! What time is it what time is it!" Sasuke pleaded, jumping up and down in his chair. He and Naruto were going to spend most of the night together, like they always did when the Uchiha Clan had _another_ one of their meetings. Sasuke would leave at around six, and come home at eleven. The next morning he would always question what the meeting was about, but he never tried to go to them anymore. Naruto was more fun than a stupid old family meeting.

"It's five forty-five. Why don't you go get ready?"

Sasuke nodded, he had eaten all of his dinner because of his excitement, even his vegetables! He raced out of the room, in complete comfort because he knew where everything was.

"Um, Mother?"

"Yes, Itachi?"

"I moved the settee again. . ."

They heard a thunk, and then Sasuke started yelling. "Hey! Who put that there! Moooottthhhheeerrr! Itachi moved the settee again!"

L.+I.+N.+E.+B.+R.+E.+A.+K.+

Sasuke had had fun. He and Naruto had gone to the park after it became 'dark', something Sasuke didn't understand, but seemed to make it the right time to go to the park. He guessed it had something to do with the amount of light, or something like that. All Naruto had said was, 'The sun goes down, and then it becomes dark!' and he was bored within ten seconds of his brother's explanation.

"We're here, Sasuke!" Naruto shouted. Sasuke winced, he really wished Naruto would stop doing that. He was almost as bad as Sakura, the only difference was that Naruto was nice to him. But they were working on it, Naruto was slowly gaining an indoor voice.

"Bye Naruto! I'll hear you at school tomorrow." Sasuke said, giggling at their internal joke. Since Sasuke couldn't see, they made a point of not using words and phrases that pertained to eyesight, like 'See you soon!' or 'See you at school tomorrow!'.

"Heheh, you too! I had fun! I wish I could come to your house sometime, it's huge!" Sasuke clutched his stomach, laughing at Naruto's ridiculous tone.

Sasuke listened intently as Naruto's footstep sped off, getting quieter and quieter the further away they got. Now, all he could hear was silence. Resting his hand on the gate, he quietly pushed the door open, not willing to wake any of the Uchihas who had decided to go to sleep after the meeting. He shut the gate behind him and started walking towards the main house, wondering why it was so quiet, too quiet. Normally, either Itachi or his parents would be waiting for him just inside the gate, but no one was there. And he could usually hear one of the radios in some of the night owl Uchiha's houses, or the small talk of the elders as he passed their homes. But none of it was there, none of it. Sasuke was scared, not just scared, terrified. He had an uneasy feeling that something was wrong.

Reaching the main house, Sasuke opened the door and stepped inside. "Mother? Father? Aniki?" Sasuke whispered. He didn't know why he was whispering, it just seemed a lot better than yelling out his presence to the unnaturally still household. He gulped, and then headed for the kitchen, hoping to grab a glass of water before going to bed.

A small splash sounded when he set foot in the kitchen. ' _Strange, Mother is always so adamant about keeping everything clean. Why is there water on the floor?'_

Sasuke bent down to get a better feel for the amount of liquid, and a strange stench hit his nostrils, making him wrinkle his nose in disgust. Letting one hand slip through the moisture, he found that it was sticky to the touch and definitely _not_ water, bringing it up to his face and sniffing it. It smelled disgustingly like iron and sweat and-

Sasuke let out a shocked cry and leapt up, stumbling further into the room. ' _Blood! It's blood! Why is there blood on the floor!? Why-'_

Sasuke's train of thought stopped when he stumbled over something large, cold, and _covered in blood._ Falling on his back jarringly, he felt the offending thick liquid soak through his shirt and pants, and quickly pulled himself into a sitting position. Reaching a trembling hand out, he found the strange object he had tripped over, and traced his hands along it until he found a face. Yes, a _face._ There was a dead body in his home! Ghosting his fingers over the corpse's features, tears sprang into his eyes as he realized who it was.

"Mother! Mother! Please don't be dead, you can't be dead!" He stood up, and ran.

He went from room to room, house to house, running into almost everything in his panic, hoping that someone, _anyone,_ was alive. ' _Please don't let everyone be dead, please! Where's Aniki!? And Father!?'_

As if reading his thoughts, a voice cuts through the silence like a knife, stopping Sasuke in his tracks.

"Where are you going, otouto?"

"Aniki!? What's happening, I found- I- Mother is dead, Aniki!"

"I realize that. So is Father." It was now that Sasuke realized that something was off. Why was Itachi above him, like, by a lot. And why did he sound so _calm._ ' _No! He-he couldn't have! Aniki would never do something like that!'_

"I can tell by the look on your face that you've figured it out. You've always been so smart, Sasuke. _Every last one of the Uchihas is dead,_ now, only you and I are left." Sasuke could hear the smirk in his Aniki's words. He turned and started running towards the Gate. If he got to Konoha, then he could find Naruto, or he could find another adult or-

"Foolish little brother. Trying to escape. But don't worry," Suddenly, Sasuke came into contact with something soft, like fabric, and wet, like blood. He fell to the ground, trembling. "If I wanted to kill you, you would be dead already."

There was a breeze-like sound, and some footsteps, and then Sasuke was alone. Completely and utterly alone. With corpses. With _his family's_ corpses. And the feel and stench of blood covering his body. ' _No. No. . .Aniki. . .'_

Sasuke broke down crying, curling into a ball, much like he had been when Naruto had first found him. "Please don't- please don't leave me like this. . . Why?"

That was all he remembered before he sank into unconsciousness.

P.+O.+V.+C.+H.+A.+N.+G.+E.+

Naruto was scared, really scared. And, for the first time in his _life,_ he wasn't scared for himself.

No, not this time. Last night, a terrible event had occurred. Every last Uchiha in Konoha had been brutally massacred. But that wasn't the worst part, it had been _Itachi_ of all people, who had killed them. And the only one left alive had been Sasuke.

He'd heard from their teacher, Iruka-sensei, at school the next day, that Sasuke had been admitted to the hospital, as well as that he was in shock. Naruto just had to see him.

As soon as the final bell rang he raced out the door, not caring if he ran anyone over. He ignored the shouts and jeers of the villagers as he flew through the crowds towards Konoha Hospital. ' _Sasuke must be so scared! He hates being left alone! And now his entire family is dead, his brother's a traitor, and he's stuck in the worst place in the universe with no one there with him. No wonder he went into shock! Whatever that is. . .'_

Slamming the door to the hospital open. He bolted towards the front desk and practically leapt on top of the counter. "Hey, lady! Can you tell me where Sasuke Uchiha's room is? I have to see him!"

The secretary glared at him, a disgusted look on her face. "Like hell you will, you demon brat! He's in shock, you have to leave him alone if he is to come out of it!"

"And I'm tellin' ya lady! Sasuke won't be okay unless someone's there with him!"

"Hmph! You're going to end up killing him, so NO!" She then picked him up and was about to toss him out, when she was stopped by a hand on her shoulder.

"Excuse me, miss. What are you doing to my student?"

"Iruka-sensei!" Great, it was Iruka-sensei. He'd be able to talk the girl into letting him see Sasuke.

"I'm simply throwing him out. The demon was trying to get into Sasuke Uchiha's room, Iruka. The monster was probably going to play a prank and kill the poor boy." The woman said smugly, expecting to be congratulated on her course of action. Most people would, unfortunately for her, and fortunately for Naruto, Iruka was not most people.

"You put that poor boy down right now. Naruto is one of my students, and so is Sasuke. The two of them also happen to be _inseparable_. Now if you will kindly tell Naruto which room is Sasuke's we'll both be out of your hair." Naruto looked up at his teacher with admiration. Iruka was glaring up a storm.

The woman, shocked, dropped Naruto. "R-room 216, sir." Naruto snickered at the sir at the end of her sentence, before saying thanks to Iruka-sensei and running off towards room 216. ' _Man, Iruka-sensei's the coolest!'_

Opening the door quietly, because he didn't want to startle Sasuke and make him even more scared, he stepped into the room. It was blank. The walls were a sickeningly bright white, and there was no furniture other than the bed in the middle of the room, the nightstand next to it, and a lone chair for visitors.

Taking his place in the chair, Naruto took a good long look at his friend. Sasuke had always been pale, but now he looked like a ghost, almost transparent. There were bags under his eyes and salt tracks down his cheeks, probably from crying. His eyes were closed, but he didn't seem to be asleep, more like waiting for something to happen. His entire body was limp, and when Naruto grabbed his hand, he found it cold and clammy.

Then, Naruto closed his eyes and listened. Ever since he had become friends with Sasuke, he would sometimes try to look at things through Sasuke's perspective, and that is, not looking at all. He heard Sasuke's breathing, which was fast, yet steady, and the room smelled way too much like medicine. There was the steady beeping sound of a heart monitor coming from somewhere down the hall, most likely the next room over, the door had been open. Other than that, though, he could discern nothing.

He opened his eyes, smiling down at Sasuke sadly. Mumbling quietly. "Hey there, Sasuke. How are you doing?"

No answer.

"Are you going to be okay? I hope so. I'm sorry about your family, and about your brother. I wish I could have been there to help you. But don't worry, I'll take care of you from now on. I mean, we're best friends, right?" Naruto paused, hoping that Sasuke would open his eyes and give him an answer. "So don't you dare leave me here like this with you in some stupid state of shock. Don't worry, I'll be here."

Naruto didn't bother saying anything else. He just sat there, staring at his friend's still form sadly. After half an hour, he fell asleep.

L.+I.+N.+B.+R.+E.+A.+K.+

Naruto was jolted awake by the sound of sobbing.

Opening his eyes, he glanced up at Sasuke and frowned at what he saw. Sasuke was curled up on the bed, head in his hands, crying. Sitting up, Naruto tentatively reached out a hand towards Sasuke, letting it rest gently on the Uchiha's knee. At first Sasuke flinched, and then he realized who it was. No one else ever touched him nicely, except his family and Naruto. And now his family was dead, so it could only be, "Naruto?"

"Hey Sasuke, how're ya doing?" Naruto was uncharacteristically quiet when he spoke. He smiled sadly when he watched Sasuke unravel himself and grab Naruto's hand, pulling Naruto onto the bed and pushing his face into Naruto's shoulder.

"T-they're d-dead Narut-to. They're all d-dead." Sasuke sobbed, Naruto hugged him.

"I know. I'm sorry. I wish I could have helped you. I shouldn't have left. I'm sorry. I can't fix anything. But I promise I won't leave you, or betray you like your Aniki did." Sasuke just pushed himself further into Naruto's chest.

They stayed like that for a long time. Sasuke crying into Naruto, and Naruto beating himself up about leaving his best friend alone like that during such a frightening event. ' _I wish I had stayed.'_

Eventually, Sasuke's sobs died down, and he pulled away from Naruto. "I don't want to go back there." was all he said.

Naruto simply smiled and said, "Don't worry, you won't have to. You can just move in with me. It'll be cramped, and we'd have to share a bedroom, bathroom, and pretty much everything else, but we could make it work."

Sasuke, seeming to hear the smile in his voice, gave a small smile in return. "Yes please. I don't want to be alone. Thank you, Naruto."

Naruto just squeezed Sasuke's hands reassuringly. He knew his friend would be alright.

* * *

Mirokai-And that's it! We might have messed up a little on the ending, and I'm pretty sure we rushed Naruto's POV, BUT HEY! NOBODY"S PERFECT!

Gaara-Next chapter we will be starting the timeline of the actual Naruto series, meaning we're skipping until they're both twelve. We get it, we're being lazy. Don't judge.

Astral- Please leave a review when you can. We would like five before we start writing the next chapter. If possible, of course.

Mirokai-MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Astral-And a Happy New Year.

Gaara-What am I supposed to say? You know what? Just- just Happy Holidays, everyone.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Astral-Man! School sucks!

Mirokai-Yeah! Like, if you want to do something productive, just go on spring break! That's how we finished this chapter!

Gaara-Spring break is almost over, unfortunately, but we gave you something pretty good to read in the meantime.

* * *

It was a wonderful spring afternoon. The sun was warm, the breeze was cool, and the sound of birds chirping could be heard faintly from the forest. It was a school day, the day before final exams, in fact, so Sasuke had absolutely no idea why he was hanging from a rope suspended in front of the Hokage Monument holding a paint bucket whilst his best friend painted graffiti all over the Hokage faces.

Naruto's obnoxious laughter filled his ears as he dangled. He felt the paint brush Naruto was holding once again dip into the bucket in his hands. "Remind me again why we're up here?" He mumbled, listening to the murmur of the spectators below.

" _Because,"_ Naruto replied, "It's fun. That and it's sure to get Jiji's attention." He then turned to the crowd below, mumbling to Sasuke, "Cover your ears."

Then, in his loudest voice, he shouted, "LOSERS, WANNABES! You don't have what it takes to do something so low! We rule, you drool!" He then turned around and resumed painting. Sasuke sighed. ' _We're going to get in so much trouble. . .'_

Just on cue, a shout came from below them. "What do you think you're doing!? Naruto you idiot! Both of you get down from there and get back to class!"

"Crap, it's Iruka-sensei! We are so screwed!" Naruto said to Sasuke.

"It was your idea. All I did was get dragged along with it."

"Yeah right. You wanted to ditch class just as much as I did." Sasuke didn't reply, but Naruto did have a point. ' _I_ was _getting tired of Iruka-sensei's droning.'_

L.+I.+N.+E.+B.+R.+E.+A.+K.

The were finally back in the classroom. Iruka had tied Naruto up with the very rope he had been using to suspend himself from the Monument. Sasuke was standing right behind him, Naruto leaning on his legs. Iruka stepped in front of them and began his lecture.

"Tomorrow all your classmates will pass the final and graduate from the ninja academy, but the last two times this day came around, you two flunked every course you'd taken! Sasuke I can understand to a certain degree, but you!?" Sasuke got the feeling Iruka was pointing at Naruto. "You choose now for your stupid tricks!? YOU MORON!" Sasuke heard Iruka sigh. He understood, Naruto could be a handful, even for him. ' _And I live with the idiot.'_

"Sasuke, he listens to you, why don't you ever try to stop him? Last I checked you actually have common sense." Iruka mumbled, his tone was that akin to a parent dealing with an unruly kid, and completely done with said child.

"Normally, yes. But he never listens to me when it comes to pranks. And also, last I checked I have a hard time navigating without him." Sasuke did his best to glare with the cloth he had tied over his eyes. "Do you honestly expect me to stop him if he threatens to leave me in the middle of who knows where?" Sasuke knew Naruto would never do that, and so did Iruka, but it was, to a certain extent, understandable. Iruka had known them since they were children, and understood that it was impossible to separate them, in good things, and in bad.

"Hmph." Iruka's footsteps moved, and he then told the entire class that because of them they'd be reviewing the art of transformation.

"WHAT!?"

"Thanks a lot guys!"

"This is all your fault!"

"Aw come on!"

L.+I.+N.+E.+B.+R.+E.+A.+K.

Half the class had already gone, and so far, so good. Most of the students had managed a perfect transformation of Iruka, but Sasuke was not so sure of himself. ' _God dammit, I hate transformation.'_

"Uchiha!" Iruka called, and Naruto gently pushed him forwards.

"Do your best, Sasuke. Remember the techniques we came up with."

Sasuke nodded, before trying his best to remember everything he knew about Iruka. Forming a slightly coherent picture in his mind. ' _Come on. . .'_

With a 'pop!' he transformed. There was silence, before Naruto started laughing. "S-Sasuke! It's black and white! And it barely looks like Iruka! Oh man that's funny!"

Iruka cleared his throat as Sasuke dispelled his apparently terrible henge. "Well, it was certainly better than last time. You got the anatomy right, and my height. But the color, and the details. . . ." He trailed off.

"I get it. It's hard to transform yourself into a perfect image of someone else when you _can't see a damned thing."_ He shuffled to the side and sulked, leaning against the wall while he waited for Naruto.

"Uzumaki!"

"Here goes. . ." Naruto said. "Transform!"

There was a 'pop!' and then another long round of silence, before Iruka made a strange noise and seemed to fall to the floor, if the sound was anything to go off of. Naruto laughed. "You like that, Sensei? I call that my Sexy Jutsu!"

Sasuke facepalmed. "Naruto. . ."

It was just then that Iruka started yelling again.

L.+I.+N.+E.+B.+R.+E.+A.+K.

"Sasuke, you're cleaning bare rock again." Naruto mumbled, shifting his hands to a point that apparently had paint on it.

"Oops." he replied, totally not sorry. ' _You're the one who got us into this mess, you idiot.'_

"Neither of you are leaving until every drop of paint is gone." Iruka said. He was sitting above them.

"So!?" Naruto yelled. "It's not like we have anyone waiting at home for us!" Sasuke flinched. He hated it when Naruto brought up their crappy childhoods, but Naruto was always so touchy about it. Especially when it came to punishments.

They worked in silence for a few minutes, before Iruka cleared his throat. "Naruto, Sasuke. . ."

"Now what." Sasuke mumbled.

"Well, I was thinking. Once you two are done here, I, well, wouldn't mind taking you guys out for ramen, or something else."

Sasuke stopped scrubbing, he felt Naruto bump his arm and smiled.

"Alright! Talk about motivation! Right Sasuke?"

"Sure." he replied. ' _It's not that bad once you get used to it.'_

"Sasuke?"

"What?"

"You're cleaning bare rock again."

L.+I.+N.+E.+B.+R.+E.+A.+K.

They were finally done. It had taken five hours, and a lot of scrubbing, but together he and Naruto had managed to get all of the paint off of the Hokage Monument. It had gone dark quite a while ago, from Iruka's comments, though that didn't really matter to Sasuke. They were sitting at Ichiraku Ramen, Naruto on his second bowl of ramen, Sasuke on his first.

"Naruto," Iruka said, out of the blue.

"Hmm?"

"Why of all placed did you choose to deface that spot? You know who the Hokages are, and you want to be the Hokage when you get older, so why?"

"Because one day, when I become the Hokage, I'm gonna surpass everyone who came before me! No matter what! And then everyone will have to look up to me, instead of dissing me like they normally do."

"Really." Iruka said. He sounded slightly surprised, as if he had never thought of it that way. "What about you Sasuke? I don't think you've ever told me what you want to be."

"I don't know. Probably Naruto's bodyguard." Naruto apparently thought this was funny, though he had never laughed at him when they discussed this at home. ' _Tch, think it's funny, do you?'_

"Yeah right. I'd be protecting you!" Sasuke knew that tone, Naruto was just teasing. He raised his fist and promptly hit Naruto on the head. "Hey!"

"I can hit you just fine, eyes or no eyes, so don't think I won't be a good bodyguard."

"Fine. ." Naruto shifted. "By the way, Sensei, can you do me a favor?"

"What, another bowl of ramen?"

"No," he hesitated, which wasn't very like Naruto at all. "Can I try on your hitai-ate, pretty please?"

"What, this? No way, you'll get one of these when you become a full fledged shinobi."

" _If_ we become full fledged shinobi." Sasuke added.

"Aw come on! Why do you always gotta be so pessimistic, Sasuke?" Naruto mumbled.

"Because it annoys you, why else?" he smirked, turning his head towards Naruto's voice.

"Fine, another bowl of ramen please, Sensei!"

"Alright."

"How can you eat that much, you idiot?"

P.+O.+V.+C.+H.+A.+N.+G.+E.

To say that he was nervous would be an understatement, Naruto was downright terrified. It was final exam day and just hoped he would manage to pass this time. Sasuke too, he would hate to be a shinobi and not have his best friend by his side. But Sasuke still had a lot of trouble with transformation jutsu and clone jutsu, so he was sure to fail. No matter what they tried, they still couldn't get Sasuke's stuff to hold color, or even form half the time. As Iruka walked into the room, Naruto watched Sasuke tense up and his head tilt forwards slightly. This was how Naruto could always tell if Sasuke was listening to something or not, namely him.

"Alright, for your final exam, you must each generate three clones. Wait here until your name is called, and then come next door."

Naruto put his head in his hands. ' _Clones, why did it have to be clones!'_

Next to him, Sasuke cursed. "This is not good, both of us suck at this technique. What are we gonna do?"

He didn't know. "Just try our hardest I guess. Maybe this time it will look better."

"Doubt it." Naruto loved Sasuke like a brother, he really did, but sometimes, Sasuke's attitude and pessimism got on his nerves.

L.+I.+N.+E.+B.+R.+E.+A.+K.

Naruto stared down Iruka and Mizuki, sweat trailing down his cheeks. He glanced at the hitai-ates on the table in front of him, and swallowed. Sasuke had already gone, and failed. He was waiting outside the room for Naruto. ' _Here goes nothing!'_

He put his hands together and concentrated. He could feel his chakra flowing inside of him. He tried to harness it, form a perfect clone. "Behold, a perfect double!" The tell-tale 'pop!' resounded throughout the room, and when he glance over, he saw. . . .

A half dead, transparent, one measly little clone on the floor, not even fully formed.

Iruka looked at him like he was an idiot. Naruto gulped and chewed one of his nails. They stared at each other for a few seconds before, "YOU FAIL!"

Naruto sighed in defeat and stomped his foot, "Ah come on!" But before he left the room, Mizuki spoke up.

"Iruka, this is his third time, Sasuke's as well, and they did both manage to conjure up another self this time, even if they were a little flawed. What if we just give them a break and-"

He was cut off as Iruka sighed and said, "The answer is no, Mizuki. Every student is supposed to generate three clones. Naruto only produced one, and a very poor one at that. And while Sasuke managed three, they were still black and white. With all due respect, neither of them warrant a passing grade."

L.+I.+N.+E.+B.+R.+E.+A.+K.

Naruto and Sasuke sat under the tree in the Academy's front yard, Naruto on the swing, Sasuke leaning against the trunk. In the long run, neither of them had passed. Naruto glanced at his friend, taking in the slumped shoulders, the crossed arms, and the frown on his face. If Naruto could see his eyes, he could bet that they would look just as, if not more dead than they normally did. A while back, when they were around eight, Naruto had suggested Sasuke cover his eyes, mostly because they were creepy, and for some odd reason Sasuke refused to close them. Now, he wouldn't mind seeing that blank gaze, even if no one stared back at him.

Listening to the other kids and their parents only made him feel worse.

"Great job, son! Your old man is proud!"

"So now, we're all adults!"

"Congratulations graduate! Tonight, mom's gonna cook up a feast!"

It didn't help that some of the other kids and parents were talking about them, how they had failed, weren't even supposed to be alive, how they shouldn't be shinobi, etc. Well, most of those comments had been directed at him, yes, but still.

"Let's go, Sasuke." Naruto stood up, grabbed Sasuke's offered hand, and they both vanished.

L.+I.+N.+E.+B.+R.++E.+A.+K.

They were halfway home, when Sasuke suddenly froze and turned, pulling on Naruto so he stopped.

"Naruto, Sasuke?"

"Mizuki-sensei!" Naruto exclaimed. What did Mizuki want with them?

"Come on, you two, I just want to talk."

"Oh, alright."

Mizuki led them to the front porch of his home, and they sat down. They sat there for a while before Mizuki started talking. "Iruka's a really serious guy, his parents died when he was young, so everything he's accomplished he did by himself, with a lot of hard work and discipline."

"And what does this have to do with us?" Sasuke asked, crossing his arms and tilting his head to the side, a sign that he didn't want to listen.

"Yeah! What does this have to do with us?"

"So," Mizuki continued, "You two remind him of himself. More specifically, you do, Naruto."

"What?"

"He thinks he's helping you to grow strong. Try to give the guy a break, can't you understand where he's coming from? From one orphen to another?"

"But," He just couldn't help the sad feeling in his heart. "I really wanted to graduate. ."

"We both did, Naruto." Sasuke said, placing a hand on Naruto's shoulder after a bit of fumbling. He turned his head towards the blonde and smiled. "I guess it's just not right, again. . ."

"Well then, I guess there's no choice, I'll have to tell you."

"Tell us, about what?" Naruto mumbled, confused.

"It's a secret I've been keeping for a long time. You see," Mizuki began, "There's this scroll that has techniques in it in the Hokage building. If you each learn one of the techniques from the scroll, Iruka will have to let you graduate."

L.+I.+N.+E.+B.+R.+E.+A.+K.

"Iruka!"

"What is it?" asked said person, opening his door, and putting his hands on his hips.

"It's Naruto and Sasuke, I'm afraid. Somehow they've found out about and stolen the secret manuscript!"

* * *

Mirokai-Ahahahaha! GET CLIFF HANGERED SUCKERS!

Astral-Finally! We managed to finish! That took a long time to write. Apologies for the cliff hanger, it was Miro's idea.

Gaara-Please tell us what you think. No review limit this time. That was only for the beginning of the fanfic. But we would still like reviews. See you next time.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Gaara-Sorry this took so long. . . . . . .

Astral-It's summer time, and instead of working on this, we've been sitting around watching anime, procrastinating. I'm so sorry. We all are.

Mirokai-WE HOPE THIS HELPS!

* * *

Getting the scroll had been easy enough. Naruto had used what he called his 'Sexy Jutsu', on the old man, a technique Sasuke was glad he didn't have the eyes to see. Then they just grabbed the scroll and headed off into the forest, where they normally hid to work on training, or when the villagers were being particularly nasty to Naruto. Sasuke still didn't understand what warranted them to treat his best friend in such an awful manner.

"Let's see. . . the first technique on here is some sort of Shadow Clone Jutsu (Kage Bunshin no Jutsu). Aw come on! It's our worst technique!" Naruto grumbled, having opened the scroll and begun reading. As Naruto opened the scroll a little further, Sasuke could tell by the rustling of paper, he suddenly let out a surprised noise and grabbed the Uchiha's hand. "Sasuke feel this!"

As Sasuke ran his hands over the scroll, he felt the ink under his fingers, but how was this possible. He could feel the kanji and katakana, and he understood it. "It's raised print. . ." he murmured in shock. In all his life Sasuke had never touched a ninja scroll that had raised print, only textbooks and translated brail scrolls, it always made him mad because he hated the fact that Naruto was constantly having to read stuff to him. It made him feel useless and stupid. "Open it more." Sasuke said in excitement, hands trailing the length of the opened portion. Naruto did so.

It wasn't long before he reached the last section of the scroll. ' _I can't believe it! I can read something! Finally!'_ He felt his mouth twitch upwards when he read the title for the last section of the scroll. 'Tips for Blind Shinobi'. This would certainly be helpful.

"Hey Sasuke, with this last section, maybe you'll finally be able to pull off the techniques!" Sasuke could hear the smile in his friends voice, and his smile grew bigger at his friends encouragement.

"What are we sitting here for then, Naruto. Let's start training!"

P.+O.+V.+C.+H.+A.+N.+N.+G.+E.+

Iruka was more than angry, he was absolutely _pissed._ What in Kami's name possessed those two to steal that scroll!? He knew them, they would never do something like that. Sasuke always managed to dissuade Naruto from any particularly horrible pranks, so why the hell did he let Naruto steal the Scroll of Sealing!?

' _I'll check the forest first. Those two always disappear in there to hide.'_

It didn't take the academy teacher long to find them. They were pretty far in, but Iruka had chased his two students enough times to know where Naruto was most likely to take them. He found them at one of their favorite spots, a little abandoned shed surrounded by a clearing. The two of them were sitting next to each other, panting.

"Gotcha!" Iruka said, standing over the two boys, in one of the most menacing stances he could muster. Naruto looked up, and Sasuke's head tilted forwards, a motion he'd seen enough to attribute it to Sasuke's version of looking at someone.

Naruto hopped up and pointed at Iruka with both hands, a large smile on his face. "About time, Nosebleed! We found you!"

Iruka growled, could the stupid blonde be any more annoying? "No you fool! I found you!" He shouted. By now, Sasuke had stood up as well. ' _Huh?'_

For the first time since getting there, he noticed that the two of them were giving off no malice whatsoever, they weren't afraid of the fact that Iruka had found them, which was odd.

"Hn, guess you have got us. Too bad you were so fast, we've only memorized one technique." Iruka was shocked by the small smile on Sasuke's lips. Unlike Naruto, Sasuke rarely did anything other than frown and smirk.

"You guys look exhausted, what have you been doing?"

"Wait'll we show you!" Naruto said enthusiastically. "I never knew some of the shinobi arts were so amazing! If we show you we've mastered these techniques, you'll have to let us graduate!"

"Even I can do it, Iruka-sensei. I can finally do something right!" The look on Sasuke's face was one he'd rarely seen before. He'd never seen Sasuke so. . . happy.

The two of them had come here to practice ninjutsu? They had worked themselves to exhaustion. All because they wanted to graduate? ' _But then, why did they steal the scroll?'_

"Naruto, what's up with the scroll on your back?"

"Huh? Oh this! Mizuki-sensei told us about it! He said if we could show you that we'd learned one of the techniques in this scroll, then-" Sasuke cut Naruto off.

"Then you'd let us become full fledged shinobi! And we actually managed to do it too, Iruka-sensei."

Iruka was shocked. ' _. . .Mizuki?'_

Suddenly, he sensed killing intent, and quickly pushed Naruto away with a palm strike, making sure he his Sasuke and the two of them were thrown out of harm's way. And not a moment too soon, because less than a second later, a barrage of kunai came shooting out of the trees.

P.+O.+V.+C.+H.+A.+N.+G.+E.+

Naruto watched in horror as Iruka was pinned to the wall of the shed by a large amount of kunai. "I'm not surprised that you figured out where to go, Iruka." It was Mizuki, crouched on the branch of a nearby tree.

"Now I understand." said Iruka, pulling out one of the kunai that had imbedded itself into his side. Naruto looked back and forth between his two senseis, confused. ' _Huh? What's going on? Why the hell did Mizuki-sensei attack Iruka-sensei?'_

"Naruto!" Sasuke said, running his hands along the ground in a wide circle, trying to find his friend. Naruto grabbed his hand. "Naruto, what's going on? That's Mizuki-sensei, but, he sounds like he's going to kill someone. And I heard kunai hit something! What's going on!?"

"I dunno! Mizuki-sensei just showed up and shot kunai at Iruka-sensei! I mean come on! What is this!?" He was so confused. Why did Iruka look so angry, and why did Mizuki just try to kill him and Sasuke? ' _Argh! What is going on!?'_

"The scroll, Naruto. Give it to me." Mizuki said, glaring at the orange clad boy.

"Don't give it to him! Protect that scroll with your life!" Iruka yelled, pulling yet another kunai out of his arm, glaring daggers at Mizuki. "It's more dangerous than you can imagine- it holds the record of a completely forbidden ninja art! Mizuki used you because he wants it for himself!"

"What?" Sasuke said. As much as the Uchiha was trying to hide it, Naruto knew he was scared. He stood up, pulling Sasuke behind him. Sure, Sasuke was pretty good in a fight, but he was still blind, and Naruto knew he had to protect his friend to the best of his abilities.

"And besides Naruto, even if you've read it, it will still be meaningless! I can show you what it means!"

Naruto watched Iruka's eyes widen and suck in a breath. "Sh-Shut up you fool!" He screamed, a look of horror on his face.

"You. . . know what _really_ happened in the incident where the Kyuubi was sealed up again twelve years ago, don't you?" Mizuki said smirking down at Iruka, Naruto, and Sasuke. "Since that incident, the people of our village have been bound by the strictest decree."

"I don't remember any decree, do you, Sasuke?" Naruto asked. Now he was really confused.

"No. . ."

"You wouldn't. Part of that decree was that everyone would know about it, except you!"

"Except me. . .! Why not me!? And Sasuke doesn't know about it either, so how do you explain that!?" Naruto couldn't help but feel sad at the fact that there was something he wasn't allowed to know. Even if Sasuke didn't know about it either, it still made him feel left out and pushed aside. "What was the decree!?"

Mizuki started cackling. "That no one must ever tell you. . . that what you really are. . . is the Kyuubi itself!"

"W-What!? What are you talking about!?" Naruto's voice cracked, he was the what!? That couldn't be, it couldn't be.

"STOP!" Iruka shouted, desperately trying to find the strength to attack Mizuki and shut him up.

"Don't listen to him, Naruto. Don't listen to him. ." Sasuke mumbled, squeezing his friend's hand. Naruto tried desperately not to, he really did.

"It was you who murdered Iruka's family! You are the nine tailed fox that destroyed the village! Until, at last, our beloved hero, the fourth hokage, trapped you and bound you, in this form."

"STOP IT!" Shouted Iruka again.

"It's not true, it's not true. ." Sasuke had begun repeating this like a mantra. Naruto knew he was trying his best to make him feel better, but it didn't help enough. He felt shocked, hurt. ' _I'm. . . the Kyuubi?'_

"Since then, you've been made a fool of by everyone in town! Didn't you think it was strange? To be so despised, everywhere you went? The only one who treated you as a person, a useless, blind, outcast Uchiha! If he were honest, I bet even Iruka would admit he hates you too!"

"Shut up, shut up shut up!" Sasuke yelled at Mizuki. "Naruto is nothing like that." Naruto smiled a little bit. ' _At least I still have Sasuke.'_

Mizuki took one of his large shuriken off his back, beginning to spin it, aiming for the frozen jinchuriki. "No one will ever accept you, except for that outcast Uchiha!"

The white haired man threw the shuriken, the only thought that ran through Naruto's head was, ' _I've gotta make sure that doesn't hit Sasuke!'_ He tackled his friend and brother to the ground, shielding him as best he could. ' _I'm not gonna let the one person who actually accepts me, die!'_

And then, to his surprise, Iruka was leaning over them, a blade of the shuriken embedded in his back.

Mizuki growled, obviously upset by what had happened. Naruto looked up at his sensei, watching the blood that dripped out of his mouth. ". . .Why. . .?" he mumbled. Why had Iruka protected him? Naruto had killed his parents, didn't he hate them.

"Naruto, what going on!?" Sasuke asked. Naruto just squeezed his hand, and the Uchiha fell silent.

". . . I . . . I know that I was hard on the both of you, you especially, Naruto. Always yelling, scolding. . . it must have hurt. Forgive me. If I'd been a better teacher, maybe none of this would have happened. . ." Naruto couldn't believe what he was hearing. Iruka. . . . didn't hate him? This was too much, he couldn't do it anymore.

"C'mon Sasuke." He mumbled quietly, taking off into the forest with his friend in tow. He ran as fast as he could, not running very far before his racing thoughts forced him to stop. He pulled Sasuke behind a tree, and they sat there, side by side.

"Mizuki-sensei is wrong, Naruto. I know you, I've lived with you since we were seven. You're not a monster. You're funny, happy, optimistic. You can be annoying at times, and your pranks really get on my nerves, you're human. Just like me. You're the best brother anyone could ask for."

Naruto smiled. "Right back atcha, Sasuke. What Mizuki-sensei said about you was wrong too. You're not useless. You always help me when I have trouble understanding the material we're taught, and even though you hate pranks, you help me with them. You can even do jutsus now, so you're not useless, not one bit. The outcast thing may be true, but we're outcasts together, right?"

"Right." Sasuke nodded, a small smile forming on his lips.

Suddenly, there was a crash, and three figures fell through the trees. Iruka had created a clone and then transformed into Naruto and Sasuke, and Mizuki had turned himself into Iruka. ' _Iruka-sensei looks hurt! That shuriken must have gone pretty deep! I hope he's alright. .'_

Mizuki started laughing maniacally. "So noble, saving your parents' murderer. . . and for what? What happens if we let him live, if we let them both live. The Uchiha's worthless, stupid, with a disability like that he'll only make a good target!"

"Then maybe the scroll is safe from a total scumbag!" Iruka shot back, panting, his back up against a tree.

"You're a fool. Naruto and I are two of a kind!"

"Two of a kind?" Iruka looked confused. Naruto didn't know what to do.

"I can use that scroll to achieve the same kind of limitless power!" Mizuki's eyes gained a crazy glint to them, Naruto watched Sasuke flinch at their teacher's tone of voice. "The demon within him hungers for that kind of strength! You were right to fear him, despise him."

Iruka let out a groan. ' _So Iruka-sensei really does hate me. . .'_ Naruto felt worse and worse, the more he listened. He just wanted to go home with Sasuke, back to their cramped apartment, and cry himself to sleep in the bedroom they shared. But then, Iruka started talking again.

"Maybe I do hate the fox. . . but not Naruto. Not the boy. For him, I have nothing but respect. He's an excellent student, they both are. They work with all their might. But they're awkward and clumsy, quite a lot. People have mocked them, shunned them. Sure, it was for different reasons, but they got the same kind of treatment. They look out for each other. I know for a fact that Naruto would give his life to protect Sasuke, and Sasuke would do the same. They have empathy, both for each other, and others. They know what it's like to be in pain. Naruto is not the Kyuubi, and Sasuke isn't a useless nobody you can just toss aside. They are both. . . citizens of Konohagakure."

After Iruka's little speech, Naruto found himself crying. He couldn't believe that Iruka held them in such high regards. He watched a few tears slip out from under the cloth Sasuke had over his eyes, and pulled it off of Sasuke's face. Those dead eyes stared back at him, not quite looking in the right spot.

"Aww! That's so sweet! Just hearing you say that makes me feel all warm and fuzzy!" There was a malicious edge to Mizuki's tone, leading Naruto to believe that he felt anything _but_ warm and fuzzy. Iruka groaned again, and Naruto could see his blood dripping down the tree. "Well Iruka, I had planned to save you for last, but sometimes things don't work out the way you plan! Say goodbye!" Mizuki howled, his second gigantic shuriken in his hands. This time, if it hit Iruka, he would surely die.

"We have to do something!" Sasuke whispered, that was all Naruto needed to launch himself out of hiding, Sasuke in tow, and headbutt Mizuki. He flung Sasuke upwards with a cry of "High kick!" and Sasuke's left leg shot out and he hit the shuriken on the inner circle, where there were no blades, knocking it off course and sending it flying into the branches of a nearby tree.

"Keep away from Iruka-sensei. ." Sasuke growled out, his dead eyes glaring forwards, somehow making his expression even more terrifying.

"Or we'll kill you!" Naruto finished, a menacing look in his eyes.

P.+O.+V.+C.+H.+A.+N.+G.+E.

"Stupid kids, you should have stayed away! Get out of here, save yourselves!" Sasuke heard Iruka yell.

"Loudmouth brats! I can kill you with one blow!" Sasuke was not a big fan of the tone Mizuki was using. It always sent shivers up his spine when someone spoke like that. But Sasuke knew something Mizuki didn't, and Naruto did too. He smirked, removing his hand from Naruto's and putting his hands in a plus position, he knew Naruto was doing the same.

"Bring it on, you jerk! Anything you throw at us will give back times a thousand!" Sasuke could hear the smirk in Naruto's voice. His body tingled as his chakra flooded his system, a large amount of energy coming from next to him as well.

"You're welcome to try, little brats!"

Then, from behind him, he heard Iruka gasp as he saw what Sasuke knew were hundreds of solid Naruto doubles, and about fifty perfect clones of himself strewn about as well.

" **SHADOW CLONE JUTSU!"** They shouted together.

Mizuki was hysteric. Sasuke could hear his breathing, and the white haired chunin was ten feet away, give or take a few inches. "What!? How did they-"

"What's the matter, tough guy? Multiple Narutos spoke at once, something Sasuke found extremely creepy. "You're going to kill us with one punch right? Come on!"

Sasuke couldn't help adding his two cents in as well. "Well then, we'll just have to attack you." Yeesh, even he sounded creepy, and he was the one talking!

Mizuki's screams could be heard for miles around, along with a few choruses of, "Hey! Sasuke watch where you're punching!"

"Sorry."

"That's a clone you idiot!"

"Whoops."

* * *

Astral-Did we do good? For some reason this chapter feels rushed. . .

Gaara-Nah, it's fine. Again, sorry it took us so long to get this out. Procrastination is one of the toughest opponents in the world.

Mirokai-HIII! THANKS FOR READING! REVIEW!


End file.
